We get it. You’re practicing social distancing (or you should be). The kids are home from school. The libraries are closed. You’re looking for some books the kids can read (or that you can read to them)… preferably with repeat reading value. We’ve got you covered.

In this series, we’ll round up and quickly recommend some books that either (a) come cheap on Amazon or your favorite local bookstore and are well worth the price or (b) have ebook versions you can quickly and easily download.

Today, we’re taking a quick look at Mike Lawrence’s Star Scouts trilogy from First Second Books.

The first book in the trilogy – Star Scouts – came out back in 2017. The second and third installments – The League of Lasers and The Invasion of the Scuttlebots – came in quick succession after that. The good news is that reading the entire trilogy in one go is by far the preferred way to join the Star Scouts. So you might as well grab all three at once.

The story centers on Avani Patel and begins as she’s trying to fit in at a new school where she’s convinced she can’t make friends and has nothing in common with her classmates. Her dad insists she joins the local Flower Scouts troop, but that only widens the divide Avani feels between herself and everyone else. The other girls are all into flowers and makeup and dreamy pop singers. Avani… isn’t.

Which is fine, because Avani is soon abducted by an alien who mistakes her for a newt. That alien also happens to be a Scout. A Star Scout, which is an intergalactic group of alien scouts who learn things like piloting spaceships and exploring space. Infinitely cooler than selling cookies.

Over the course of the three books, Avani finds an inner strength she didn’t know existed, learns about the unique strengths (and frailties) of true friendships, saves the Earth, battles evil robots, and grows closer to her dad.

It’s that last one that makes this story so unique. Though Avani tries to keep her membership in the Star Scouts – and her alien friends – a secret from her dad, that’s an awfully big secret to keep for long. But once her dad discovers her secret, he’s all in and along for the ride. It’s great to see a story that involves parents in this way, rather than sidelining them.

All three books are fantastic, and we heartily recommend them. In addition to the pure adventure they contain, there are also some great lessons in how to navigate the sometimes thorny world of young friendships, including how to deal with jealousy, conflicting emotions, being a “third wheel,” and frenemies.